Someday My Prince Will Come
by Lmuffins
Summary: As a child, Alfred asked Arthur to let him into a fairy tale book, but the adventure never happened. 400 years later, Alfred accidentally gets sucked into the tale and Arthur has to go after him.  Wizards, weakness, princesses, princes, and dragons ensue.
1. Far Away into the Forest

De-anoning from the Kink Meme; I don't think I even waited 24 hours...

I had a lot of fun with this story, although there was a while in the middle where I almost gave up on it entirely. I'm so glad I picked it back up again! Here is the original request:

Anon would like to reqest a fairytale-type story with US/UK/US.  
But! England is the hero, with America as the damsel in distress. Anon is not opposed to genderswitching so America really is a princess, or any type of AU, but it'd be cool if it could somehow be in canon universe.

Bonus: Dragons!  
Extra bonus: Non-crack. I lovelovelove crack, really I do, so I don't mind cracky fills, but a serious storyline would be awesome.

oOoOo

Far Away into the Forest

"Awfur?" Arthur looked fondly down at the little colony in his lap.

"What is it, Love?" he asked, brushing the child's hair out his eyes.

"You can do magic, wight?"

"Yes, but your people aren't terribly fond of magic, so you must keep it a secret. Do you promise?" Alfred nodded seriously and crossed his heart. "Alright then, little one, what is it you wanted to ask?"

"I want to go in here," he pointed at the storybook that Arthur was holding out in front of them.

"Into the book?"

"Yeah, I want to be in a faiwy tale!"

"That's powerful magic, Alfred. I'm not sure I could do it…"

"But Awfur, you can do anyfing!"

After that, of course, there was no way Arthur could say 'no'.

"I'll take it back to England with me when I leave next. I'll see what I can do with all my spell books back home. Do you think you could wait?"

"I'll wait forever!" The boy squealed and he wrapped his arms around his mother country's neck.

OoOoO

Arthur had just returned from his time overseas. He was currently unpacking his bags while Alfred bounded excitedly around the room. The boy was much taller than he had been when Arthur had left. He had out grown his infant gown, and was now wearing knickers like a proper little man. It made Arthur feel very proud.

"Look what I've found, Alfred. Do you remember this?" Arthur pulled a large fairytale book out of his bag. The boy blushed and looked away.

"I was a pretty goofy little kid, huh?" he said, kicking at the ground in embarrassment.

"What do you mean, Al?"

"Well, now that I'm a big kid, I feel kind of silly about some of the stuff I used to do," he explained.

"Oh?" Arthur asked, trying not to smile. Alfred was still very much a child and all his posturing was hopelessly endearing.

"I just can't believe that I thought you really knew magic. I mean, how goofy can you get?"

Arthur blanched, and slowly put the book back into his bag.

OoOoO

"Arthur! Arthur! I'm in your house, so if you find me later and you're surprised you can't get mad at me for not telling you!" Alfred was quiet for a moment, waiting for a response. There was none. He kept going in anyway, dropping his bag by the front door, and wandering into the house with his shoes still on.

After confirming that Arthur was, in fact, not home, Alfred settled himself in front of the television. It wasn't long, however, before he grew bored. He could only handle so much British television in a single sitting. Getting up from the couch, he went in search for something to do. He eventually found himself in Arthur's study, and he went about exploring the bookshelf for something to read. Somewhere in the back of his mind he thought Arthur would be impressed with him if he came home and found the younger nation reading.

Unfortunately most of the books looked long and kind of boring. That or Alfred had already read them during his visits throughout the past few decades. He hunched down so that he could read the spines of the books lower down. They were generally older books, ones that were about as old as Alfred or even older. Suddenly he found himself looking at a very familiar spine. He pulled it out and laughed.

"My old fairy tale book! I'd totally forgotten this!" In a fit of nostalgia, he quickly opened it up- and then he was gone.

OoOoO

When Alfred woke up, he had no idea where he was. He was lying on the ground, and he could smell the rich scent of wet earth. Blearily he sat up blinking, and glanced around. He was in the forest, the creepiest damn forest he'd ever scene. Every tree was gnarled and dead, and the eyes of animals glowed from within their hollow trunks.

Alfred screamed and staggered to his feet, hugging his arms to his body in the fear that he would have to touch something. It looked like something out of a horror movie, and he was convinced that a zombie or an ax murderer was going to pop out at any moment. He heard a rustling behind him, and he turned around quickly.

"Help me! Oh please, won't somebody help me." It was a weak cry, and suddenly Alfred wasn't afraid anymore. He was, after all, a hero, and if someone was in need he had to help them.

"Hey! I'm here don't worry, I'll help you!" He called out, "Keep talking, I'll come help you."

"Thank you, Dearie. I thought I'd die out here."

Alfred approached the voice, and discovered an elderly woman who had fallen into a ditch. She was hunched and as gnarled as the surrounding trees. She was dressed in a black cloak, and she looked up at Alfred pathetically.

"Don't worry, I'll get ya out." He hopped down into the hole with her.

"You silly boy!" she chided, "Now we're both stuck."

"Nah. It's cool. Get on my back, and I'll climb out of here." He smiled at her and bent down on his knees so that she could climb onto his back. With one hand he supported her, and with the other he began to pull them out of the hole. When they were out of the ditch he placed her back onto the ground.

"My my my! What a heroic boy, and so strong," she croaked.

"Heheh, yeah well," Alfred said with false modesty.

"I am earnest, my boy. Such strength is remarkably uncommon. But that aside, I am very grateful. Can I offer you a small token of my thanks?" She smiled at him, showing her few teeth. The old woman reached into her cloak and pulled out a large and shiny apple. "I'm sure a strapping lad such as yourself is always hungry."

"Am I ever!" said Alfred, who hadn't been hungry a moment ago, but was suddenly ravenous. He reached out greedily for the proffered fruit, and then quickly devoured it.

Almost immediately he felt weak. It was as though all of his strength and power was being drained out of his body. In a moment he barely felt strong enough to lift his own head, let alone anything else.

The old woman cackled, she laughed, and in a puff of smoke she turned into a handsome wizard. Alfred stared at him in exhausted confusion.

"What a stupid expression you have," he spat in disgust. "but you're not bad otherwise, so I'm going to add you to my collection."

OoOoO

Arthur arrived home after a long day of government work. He was exhausted and thinking fondly of the cup of tea he would be making himself as soon he reached the kettle. He went to unlock the door, only to discover that it was already open.

"Bugger," he sighed angrily, and he swung the door open to reveal a familiar American Flag backpack. "Of course," he muttered.

He entered the house, toed his shoes off, and sighed again when he noticed that Alfred had tracked mud inside.

"Alfred! You are cleaning this up yourself! You know that, don't you? Alfred? Alfred!" There was no response, so Arthur huffed and went searching for him. He followed the footprints for a while, but eventually they faded and he still hadn't found his ex-colony. He was forced to search the rest of the house.

The door to his study was open, which seemed promising. He walked in, slowly, hoping to catch the boy doing something he could berate him for. The only thing he found, however, was a book laying open on the floor.

"What is this doing here?" Arthur murmured to himself, bending down to pick it up. He sensed the power even before he touched the page, but he touched it anyway.

oOoOo

Author's Note: Not much to say about this chapter. Although, the two classic Disney scenes that I most prominently ripped off in this chapter are both from Snow White. The poisoned Apple scene and the escape through the forest scene. The chapter title is taken from the instrumental in that second scene. You can find it by searching "Far Away into the Forest" on youtube.


	2. Someday My Prince Will Come

So here is the second chapter, which introduces the princesses. I'd like to thank all those people who favorited or put the story on alert.

And a special thanks to those four people who commented. You guys are the super awesome! Alfred approves.

Some Day My Prince Will Come

"In here, my Pet," the wizard crooned, leaning in entirely too close to Alfred's face. He didn't have the strength to lean away. The wizard had led him on a long walk through the forest to a gargantuan black castle, and it had taken the little energy he had to get there.

"Watcha gonna do to me?" he asked, tired and frightened.

"For now? Nothing. I'm merely adding you to the collection." He waved his hand and the great wooden door that was in front of them swung open. It revealed an expansive room that held a wardrobe, five beds, and four young women. They stared at Alfred and the Wizard in horror. "There are clothes for you. Be changed by dinner. I want to look at you while I eat. I am a great appreciator of art."

He pushed Alfred into the room and shut the door behind him.

"Who are you?" One of the girls asked nervously. The four girls clung to each other in fear. Alfred gave them a weak smile, to try and calm them down.

"My name's Alfred," he said gently. "Don't worry, I'll get us out of-"

His legs quivered and he collapsed to the ground. The girls hurried over to him. Two of them bent down and helped him to his feet and then over to one of the beds.

"You've been enchanted," One of the girls said. "I suppose you'll be staying here with us."

"But I'm a hero…" Alfred insisted, trying to sit up.

"It's fine," another girl said, "Our princes will come some day!"

There was a fit of giggles.

"We should introduce ourselves!" the smallest girl said. "My name is Rose."

"I'm Violet," said the tallest girl.

"I'm Bluebell," said a girl with red hair and freckles.

"And I'm Daisy," said the last girl.

"It's nice to meet you," Alfred said quietly. They giggled and sat on the bed beside him.

"We've never had a boy before!" Daisy said, smoothing out her yellow dress.

"How long have you been here?" Alfred asked.

"I've been here for two years now," Violet told him, nervously playing with her long black braid. "All the other girls came after me."

"I was the last before you," Rose piped up.

"He's never done anything to you, has he?" Alfred asked quietly, looking down at the bed instead of looking into their eyes.

"Like what?" asked Bluebell.

"Like, stuff…" he said quietly.

"He makes us dress pretty, and he picks one of us every night to eat dinner with him," Rose said, nodding seriously and making her blond curls bounce.

"He calls us artwork and compliments us, but we're not allowed to speak or eat in front of him," Daisy said quietly, hiding her eyes behind her brown bangs. "He scares me."

"Dammit! If only I were stronger, I could get you girls out of here!" Alfred growled angrily.

"Don't worry, Alfie. Someday our Prince's will come and rescue us," Rose said patting his hand gently. "There'll be one for each of us. Each on a white horse, all dressed in golden armor."

"Each will have a jeweled sword, and they'll slay the evil wizard!" Bluebell said excitedly.

"Then they'll lift us onto their glorious steeds and together we'll ride of into the sunset," Violet told him, sighing wistfully.

"And we'll all live happily ever after…" Daisy added quietly.

"How do you know all this?" Alfred asked, cocking his head slightly.

"Because we wish for it every night on the evening star," Rose told him, "And a wish from the heart is the most powerful of all magic."

"Alfie will wish with us," Bluebell said grinning, "Won't you Alfie?"

"I guess…"

The girls burst into peals of laughter and hugged him. Alfred felt mildly uncomfortable.

"Let him be, girls," Violet said gently, "We need to find him something to wear."

OoOoO

Arthur opened his eyes slowly, rubbing his head as he sat up. He was lying on the cobblestones of some old city, and he could see the thatched roofs of houses rising up on either side of him. There was shouting and the everyday bustle of a busy town going on around him.

Suddenly he realized that some of the shouting was directed at him.

"The road ain't for sleeping, ya damn drunk. If ya don't move quick, I'm gonna run my ox right over ya."

Arthur jumped to his feet and scrambled out of the way, just in time to see a large ox place a heavy hoof where his head had been only a moment ago. The man driving it sneered at him. Arthur flipped him off before hurrying away.

He slowed once he'd put some distance between himself and the ox man. He needed time to think. This world was part of Alfred's old fairytale book, that much he knew. But it had been hundreds of years since he'd read the book last and he couldn't much remember the story. He had a vague memory of it containing more princesses than a Disney theme park, but that wasn't much to go on. Besides even if he could remember the story it wouldn't do him much good. It had been a relatively short and simple tale. Just looking around him he could tell that this world was much more fleshed out.

"Good morrow, fair traveler! Might I ask you a few questions?" Arthur turned to see a prince riding down the stone streets and waving to him. This seemed like a good sign.

"I'll gladly answer what I can, Your Highness," He said bowing graciously. The Prince swung himself off of his horse, and tossed his head, to remove his curly black hair from his eyes.

"Your manners are excellent. Most foreign travelers find themselves uneasy with the etiquette of new kingdoms. Might I ask where you hail from? I have never seen clothes such as yours." He flashed a charming grin. It would have impressed most people, but Arthur felt that Alfred's smile was better.

"It's a long way off, Sir. I wouldn't want to bore you with the details. What was the question you first wanted to ask me, Your Highness?"

A look of concern passed over the young man's blandly handsome face, "Have you heard of any stolen princesses on your journeys?"

"Princesses?"

"Yes. My dearest Princess Violet has been missing for nearly two years now, and I have yet to find her. I have in my acquaintance three other princes in much the same situation. They too have lost their princesses."

"This is a common occurrence, then?" Arthur asked with one large eyebrow raised.

"Yes. Princesses often get kidnapped. They tend to grow out of it when they become Queen's though," The prince said seriously.

"Ah," Arthur replied, "Of course they do."

"It is a great tragedy that you have not heard of them. I was hoping you would have news, and that I could rally the other princes off to battle." The Prince stared dramatically off into the distance.

"Might I possibly trouble you with a question, before we part?" Arthur asked. He found it was always good to be polite with royalty, even the strange fantasy kind.

"Of course, my fair foreign friend. Ask away!"

"I have actually misplaced a person myself…"

"A fair maiden? A princess of your own?" The Prince asked, leaning in enthusiastically.

"Ah, no. Not exactly, no. It's a boy actually. A tall lad. Strong, unmannered, about as far as you can get from a maiden really."

"Oh." The prince was thoroughly put out.

"I don't suppose you've seen any such boys, dressed as strangely as myself?"

The prince shook his head. Arthur sighed.

"This fellow means a lot to you, doesn't he? Is he a brother, perhaps? Or an old comrade in arms?" The prince said kindly.

"I don't even know what he is to me. But the damn loveable dolt is bound to get himself in trouble if he's left alone too long."

"I tell you what," the Prince said kindly, smiling again. "You come with me. I'll introduce you to my fellow princes. We'll form a search party. We'll see if we can't find our Princesses and this lad of yours."

Arthur looked up suddenly. Advancing the story was probably the best option he could take. "I'd gladly join you Prince…"

"Prince Quartz," he said suavely.

"Quartz, right. That's a name. My name is Arthur."

"Excellent! Come Arthur! Follow my steed." The man swung back up onto his horse, and began to trot off down the street with Arthur hurrying after him.

oOoOo

"Alfie! You should wear this!" Rose said, pulling a red tunic and tights out of the wardrobe. Bluebell bumped her out of the way with a hip and waved a very similar navy outfit.

"No, Alfie, you have to wear this one."

"Mine is better!" Rose pouted, putting her hands on her hips and turning to Bluebell.

"I think you'd look good in this," Daisy told him quietly, coming up to him with an all white ensemble. Alfred was perched miserably on the edge of one of the beds. He looked up at Daisy and sighed but said nothing. Violet hurried over and shooed Daisy out of the way.

"Come on girls, let's leave him alone. I'm sure he can pick his own clothes. He doesn't need us hovering over him like a bunch of old mother hens." She went around, plucking the clothing out of the arms of all the other girls, before returning to Alfred and handing him the whole bundle. "You pick out what you want. The four of his will look away while you change."

Alfred smiled at her, deciding that Violet was defiantly his favorite, as she herded all the girls into one corner of the room and had them face the wall. He turned his attention to the pile of clothes, picking at each garment with disgust. When he had eventually forced himself into an outfit, he cleared his throat.

The princesses turned around all at the same time. They giggled and gathered around him. He was wearing the red tunic, white tights, and matching navy shoes and belt. Alfred was fond of the colors, but nevertheless it was the single gayest thing he had worn in his life.

"This is the gayest thing I've ever worn in my life," he said, wrinkling his nose and looking down at his clothes.

"Oh it is! So very bright and gay!" Rose said sighing. Alfred had the distinct feeling that they were not quite communicating with each other.

"You picked a little bit of every outfit," Bluebell laughed, "that's very kind of you."

"Heh," Alfred said nervously. "So when exactly is this dinner dealy any way?"

"He'll send a living suit of armor to get you when the time comes," Violet told him gently, "There's no need to be nervous."

"All you have to do is sit there, and answer his questions. He doesn't like it when you talk without being spoken to."

"And he doesn't like it when you eat his food either," Daisy said.

"But when do I eat?" Alfred asked, suddenly shocked.

"There'll be a little something waiting up here when you return," Violet assured him.

There was a knock on the door and Alfred and the four princesses turned their heads towards it.

"Go on," Bluebell said, "It's for you."

Alfred approached the door slowly, opening it to reveal a suit of armor waiting patiently. He could see through the grill of its helmet, that there was no face inside. He followed in tentatively, throwing a glance over his shoulder.

The girls waved at him quietly, and then suddenly the door slammed shut between them.

oOoOo

Author's note: So this chapter (and the entire fic) are named after the song "Someday my prince will come" from Snow White. Google it.


	3. Genuflect, Show Some Respect

Hello again, here is the third chapter. It includes dinner and a handful of more princes. I hope you enjoy it. Also, thanks again for the favs and alerts.

The reviews were love!

Genuflect, Show some Respect

Alfred didn't want to eat dinner with an all powerful wizard, partly because he was dead set against believing in magic. Although this was becoming increasingly difficult as it was becoming increasingly obvious that he was not dreaming. He'd never had dreams this realistic before. Most of the time his dreams, or what he could remember of them, were short and stupid and made no sense. His unconscious wasn't very good at telling cohesive stories. Besides, Alfred didn't like to think that he'd have a dream about being stuck with a bunch of giggly princesses. Heroes were supposed to have manly dreams.

Of course the only other option was that magic had magicked him into a magical world filled with magic, and he wasn't to keen on that idea either. It would mean that there was an entire side of the world that he had spent most of his life ignoring. More disturbing still it would mean that Arthur wasn't a crazy old man, and that he was right and Alfred was wrong.

But following a living suit of armor through a dark and creepy castle, more detailed than anything Alfred's mind could have ever cooked up, was making it very difficult not to believe in magic. More than that, it was making it very difficult to feel anything angry or derisive towards Arthur. The older nation was the only one that Alfred knew who was knowledgeable about magic, and he was probably the only one who could get Alfred out of the bizarre and frightening situation he found himself in. He didn't think he'd ever wanted to see Arthur so badly in his life.

The suit of armor stopped abruptly. It turned, creaking, and faced Alfred. The nation looked up. Behind the metal creature was an immense wooden double door. It was beautifully ornate, in a frightening sort of way. The shapes of tangled tree branches were carved into it. Behind their twisted limbs, the frightening shapes of dragons could be seen, and at the very top there was a picture of a sword. Alfred gaped at it, until suddenly the suit of armor pounded the butt of its spear against the stones three times, and the door opened slowly before him.

It revealed a long thin room, which held a dining table fit to seat a hundred men at least. The table was lit all along by immense candles that flickered entrancingly in the darkness. There was enough food for a feast. It was old fare, not what Alfred was used to, even in his earliest days. There were roast pigs, and tremendous birds, meat pies and loaves of bread that didn't look like they could ever have fit into an oven.

Alfred's stomach began to rumble, and his mouth watered in appreciation. He hadn't eaten anything since the cursed apple, and he was starting to grow hungry. He was so distracted by his appetite that he did not notice the wizard seated at the head of the table at the far end of the room. He practically jumped when the Wizard addressed him.

"Come closer, Boy, and let me look at you."

Alfred glanced back at the doorway, wondering vaguely if it would be worth it to attempt some sort of escape. The door slammed suddenly shut, and he was forced to continue his trek towards the wizard. The man was shrouded in shadow, and Alfred could barely see him as he approached. He had the uncanny feeling of being looked over, and he pulled self-consciously at his tunic, in an attempt to make it longer.

When he was at last close enough to the Wizard to make out his pointed black beard, and steely gray eyes, he opened his mouth to speak. Before he could, a chair pulled itself out from the table and the Wizard gestured for him to sit down.

"Take those things off your face, I want to see you properly."

"I can hardly see without-" the glasses took themselves from his face. They floated from his eyes, folded themselves nicely, and placed themselves on the table.

"There now. Much better," the Wizard crooned.

"You shouldn't do that," Alfred told the blurry man angrily, "Those aren't normal glasses. People live there."

"How is it that such strange stupidity can live behind such an appealing a mask?" The wizard said.

"I'm serious!" Alfred insisted. "You have no idea who you're messing with! If I had my strength you'd be so dead."

The wizard eyed him with amusement. He picked leisurely at a chicken leg and chuckled, "You don't have your strength though, do you? You are a naive fool who would take food from anyone. Did no one ever warn you of the power of magical fare?"

Alfred had a vague recollection of Arthur telling him about never, ever, never, taking food from the fae. This advice had never come in handy, and he hadn't thought on it in centuries. Unable to think of a decent response, Alfred moodily reached out for something to eat. Without his glasses it was difficult to tell what he was grabbing for, he eventually managed to rip a chicken leg off for himself. He bit it petulantly.

"Are you some kind of spectacular idiot?" The wizard asked in disbelief. "We were just discussing how foolish it was to eat the food of the enchanted!"

Realizing his mistake, but feeling too proud to agree with his captor, Alfred shrugged. "I don't care. I'm hungry."

He continued eating as the Wizard watched him. The food gave him much the same bizarre sensation as the apple had earlier. Even as his stomach filled, he felt as though the energy was being drained from his very bones. His eyelids began to feel heavy and he placed the meat back onto the table in exhaustion. He couldn't eat anymore.

"Tsk. Such foolishness," the Wizard said. He was still eating; the food clearly had no effect on him. "Didn't the girls tell you that there would be something for you to eat after my meal?"

Alfred nodded slowly. "I didn't think it would be enough, though…"

"Whatever I serve you _is_ enough." The wizard told him. "I'll be sure to put a spell on it too. Something to put the color back into your face, without putting the strength back into your muscles."

Alfred felt unbelievably tired. He wanted nothing more than to simply curl up and go to sleep. He didn't have the energy to speak or to eat. The world around him was blurry and dark. This vague miserable experience was much more like a dream than anything he'd experienced earlier. He could feel the wizard's eyes on him, and he wished desperately that there was something he could do. He felt absolutely helpless.

oOoOo

There wasn't a castle in town. This much was obvious by a simple glance at the skyline. Consequently, Arthur had no idea where Prince Quartz was leading him. Had he ventured a guess at where they were going to find a large group of princes, the answer would not have been "dilapidated stable". Yet, Quartz rode, quite confidently, into the confines of a rotting old wooden stable, leaving Arthur to tag along behind him.

The stable was no more glorious inside than it was outside. There were piles of hay all about, and a few of the boards in the roof had fallen away entirely. There were, however, three magnificent white horses already present, and besides each of them was a prince.

Arthur felt quite out of place in his work suit and stocking feet. It wasn't simply a matter of his being anachronistic; he was completely out classed. The princes were all dressed in tunics and capes as glorious as the one that Quartz was wearing. If he could not appear to be their equal, than he supposed he ought to play the subservient role; he would probably get the best results that way. He bowed deeply, saying nothing and waiting for the princes to address him.

"Who's the pauper, Quartz?" One of the princes asked. Arthur glanced towards him briefly. He was shorter than Arthur, looking as though he hadn't quite finished growing yet. He had blonde hair that was pulled back in a short messy ponytail. The boy also had freckles, and a smug look on his face.

"This is Arthur. He has traveled from lands far away and has offered to help us find our fair maidens. In return he asks only that we keep an eye out for his missing comrade," Quartz announced. He then turned to Arthur. "My fine fellow, meet my fellow royalty. The young man who addressed you is Prince Garnet."

"A pleasure to meet you, Your Highness," Arthur said bowing again. The boy grinned at him in a self satisfied way. He gave Arthur the strange impression that he shared all of Alfred's negative points and none of the good.

Prince Quartz placed a hand on his shoulder and directed him towards a thin nervous looking man dressed in blue. He smiled awkwardly at the nation and adjusted a pair of glasses at the end of his nose. "This is Prince Turquoise."

"My pleasure," Arthur said with another bow.

"Thanks…" The man muttered, he then focused his attention on his horse and averted his eyes.

"Last we have Prince Topaz," Quartz announced. He gestured to a delicately featured man who was leaning against the doorframe and staring dreamily at the sky. The man turned, revealing wispy brown bangs and large gray eyes.

"Ah, a traveler! I am terribly glad to meet you. It fills my sad heart to meet those who have traveled. It makes me forget the loss of my dear sweet Daisy."

"Oh," Arthur responded and, unsure what else to say, he simply bowed.

"So, Arthur, my good man, now that I have introduced you to my companions in heroics, will you lend us whatever help you can?" Prince Quartz asked.

"Certainly. I'll do whatever I can. Now are you certain you haven't any leads at all?" he asked looking around at all the princes.

"Well, uh-I, we have a map," Turquoise stuttered pulling a large rolled up piece of parchment out of his saddlebag.

"That's good…" Arthur said, "What's on the map?"

Turquoise hurried over and rolled the map out in front of him, but said nothing. It was a simple map, the sort that might appear at the beginning of a children's fantasy novel or in one of Kiku's videogames. It showed a town in the center and a number of different terrain around it. There was a mountain range in one direction, a lake in another, a desert a canyon, and a number of other places that would never have been so close to one another in real life. Some of the places were marked with large red Xs.

"What do these signify?" he asked pointing to one of the letters.

"Those are the places we've already searched as thoroughly as possible," Quartz informed him.

"How did you choose where to start?"

"We just pick one randomly and then give it our all," Garnet said enthusiastically, coming to join the three men by the map.

Arthur was silent for a moment; as he studied the map he raised an eyebrow, "So you haven't tried this large intimidating castle in the middle of this creepy forest?"

The princes all looked at one another and then back at Arthur. They shook their heads.

"Why there?" Topaz asked, "That place has no beauty to it."

"Well, your princesses are clearly somewhere from which they can't get back of their own volition. They're not merely lost. Quartz said they were likely kidnapped. If that's true, shouldn't they be in the only other place on the map that has someone who could have done the kidnapping?"

"I don't follow," said Quartz, leaning in intently. The other princes followed his lead.

"They were kidnapped by a bad person. This castle is scary, and it's in a scary place. It probably belongs to a scary person," Arthur said, the princes still seemed confused. "The bad guy is here!" He jabbed at the map with his finger.

"Oh," the princes said in unison.

"We attack in the morning!" cried Quartz, "For now we prepare!"

OoOoO

Author's Notes: I had some trouble picking a Disney title for this one. The only magical meal song I could think of was be our guest, but it didn't have the right feeling to it. I eventually decided on this line from "Prince Ali" in Aladdin to represent the princes. It was the only prince song I could think of.

"Prince Ali fabulous he Ali Ababwa/ Genuflect, show some respect, down one knee"


	4. When You Wish Upon a Star

Here is the fourth chapter. It may be the most serious chapter (which isn't saying much).

Thanks to all my readers, and especially those who reviewed!

When You Wish Upon a Star

"Alfie, are you alright?" Rose squealed when he staggered into the room. The girls crowded him the moment he appeared and they rushed him over to his bed.

"What happened?" Bluebell asked.

"You look sick," Daisy said quietly.

"I ate the food…" Alfred mumbled stupidly.

"That was silly, of you," Violet told him gently, coming towards him with a plate of food. There were a few slivers of meat on it and nothing else. "This is the food he meant for you to eat. Are you still hungry?"

Alfred had already reached for it and was on his second slice. "It's cold," he said in disappointment.

"Just pretend it's your favorite!" Bluebell told him.

"A dream in your heart is the greatest food of all," Rose added.

"It's gone whatever it tasted like," Alfred said lying back on the bed. "Now what do we do?"

"Well, it's almost bed time," Violet said.

"But it's so early," the nation protested. "It's just gotten dark out."

"We have to get up early to clean the castle," Bluebell said, "We have to do it while the Wizard is out in the woods performing his evil deeds."

"Oh," Alfred said. He had been privately coming to the conclusion that without TV and the Internet, going to bed early might not be so hard anyway.

"Turn around, Alfie. We've got to change into our bed clothes," Rose said shaking a finger at him. He nodded before covering his eyes with his hand and rolling over to face the mattress. He stayed there until Rose called out: "Okay, Alfie!"

Daisy was standing right near him when he stood up, "Here's your gown," she said gently.

"Uh, thanks," he responded. It had been forever since he'd last worn a nightgown. When had they gone out of fashion? Before the First World War certainly, either way it seemed damn girly now. Violet was hurrying all the girls to look away as he stood up, and he was able to change without prying eyes. Just as the gown fell around his ankles he heard a shriek.

"The wishing star! I see it!" All the girls rushed towards the room's large window. They knelt down together and clasped their hands together.

Daisy turned around and patted the ground next to her while looking at Alfred. Slowly he joined them.

"Have you ever wished on a wishing star before?" Bluebell asked him. He nodded.

"We always go in age order, do you think you're older than Violet?" Rose questioned.

"Yeah," Alfred laughed, "I'm pretty sure."

"Okay, I'm gonna go," Rose said. She leaned her forehead against her hands and her little blond curls fell against her cheeks. "Wishing star, could you please send my Prince Garnet to save me? If you do I just know we'll live happily ever after for ever and ever."

She nodded when she had finished and turned to Daisy. The brunet blushed before closing her eyes and speaking. "Star of dreams if it isn't much trouble, please let me see my dear prince Topaz. Please."

Bluebell was next, "Oh wishing star, I hate being here so much. I want to be free again to run and laugh and play. If you could give Prince Turquoise the bravery to come save me, it would be great. Thanks."

Violet smiled as each girl said her dream. When it was her turn she squeezed her eyes shut. "Oh wishing star, I've spoken to you every night for two years now. You know my dearest dreams and desire. Please send me my true love to carry me away from this wretched place. I know he's out there waiting for our hearts to be joined at last."

She turned to Alfred when she had finished and smiled encouragingly. Feeling slightly silly Alfred turned his eyes up towards the shiny star that blinked down at them from the heavens. He didn't know what he wanted.

"Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish might, have the wish I make tonight…" he went silent.

"I like that beginning, but now you have to say something," Rose insisted.

"I don't know what I wish for. You guys all had nice stuff, but I don't have anyone to wish about."

"I'm sure you do," Daisy said quietly. "I'm sure there's someone whose heart has touched your own. Your true love must be out there somewhere."

"Close your eyes, Alfred," Violet told him, "And empty your mind's eye."

He did as she said.

"Now think of the most at peace you've ever been."

The life of a nation was a long difficult one. There was never really any peace for his kind, and Alfred had to cast his memory very far back. He saw himself as a very small child curled up against Arthur's chest and listening to his heartbeat.

"Did you do that?" Bluebell asked, "Now think about the most fun you've ever had with another person."

Alfred skimmed through times he had played games with Kiku or Mathew, but somehow landed on a time that he and Arthur had gone to a Beatle's concert. As much fun as though show had been, he'd loved nothing more than the walk back to Arthur's home. The two of them had been singing loudly together, laughing, and dancing in the streets. Arthur had smiled like there had never been any problems between them, and that night it really felt as if there hadn't been.

"Now, what was the saddest you've ever felt for another person?" Daisy asked him mournfully.

Almost immediately Alfred remembered the first glimpse he'd gotten of Arthur after the Blitz. He had been bruised and bloody, scarred, and so thin that he looked like you could knock him over with a feather. The exhaustion in his eyes seemed to stem all the way back through his centuries of existence. When he'd noticed Alfred looking at him, his eyes had grown defiant and strong again. Sadness and guilt had shot through Alfred in that moment, and he had felt like a failure.

"Now your happiest moment ever," Rose chimed in, her voice uncharacteristically soft.

It was after the war. The Nazis had been defeated, and although Alfred knew he still had to head to the pacific front, he had been enjoying the celebration just the same. He had locked eyes with Arthur who had smiled and come running at him. They had embraced, Alfred pulling the older nation's thin form against him. It had been short, but it felt wonderfully like forever. Alfred had loved that moment. Arthur was so warm and so happy, and Alfred had helped make his sadness disappear. When Arthur had pulled away the two of them laughed awkwardly. Alfred remembered feeling a little empty before the celebration had pulled him back out of his own thoughts.

"Look," Rose giggled, "he's blushing."

"You got someone, right?" Bluebell asked. "It was the same one every time?"

Alfred nodded, feeling somewhat stunned and out of it.

"Then you do have your true love!" Violet said with a gentle laugh.

"What? What? No… I…No. Him? Arthur? But he's… no… I mean… come on. Arthur?"

"How can you deny the love that sits even now inside your heart?" Daisy asked gently. Alfred's cheeks burned and he looked down at his hands.

In love? It was impossible. He would have noticed. You didn't spend all your time teasing, playing, talking with, and fighting alongside a guy and not notice you were in love. Just because he would have picked Arthur over any one else to spend time with, even when Kiku was more fun and Mathew was easier to get along with. Just because he liked the feeling of warmth when Arthur accidentally touched him. Just because Arthur was the center of all his most evocative memories…

"Oh crap…" Alfred whispered.

"Make your wish!" Rose urged.

Alfred turned his eyes back to the sky and nervously began again. "Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish might, have the wish I make tonight, please let Arthur find me. I… I know he's the only one who can help me now… and… well… I really want to see him more than anyone. I know you can do it."

He glanced at the girls for approval and they all began to coo over him, telling him that he had done it perfectly and telling him they were sure his prince would come, even if it was a bit unusual.

Shortly after they were all in bed, Alfred found himself staring at the high stone ceiling. He couldn't get thoughts of Arthur out of his head, and he was still awake even long after the sound of the girls' sleeping breath filled the room.

He climbed out of bed and padded in his bare feet towards the window. The same bright star was still out there. He stared at it intently and wondered if it could really make his dreams come true. As if to answer his own question, Alfred began to sing quietly to himself.

"When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are, anything your heart desires will come to you. If your heart is you dream no request is too extreme…"

He paused in his singing and got down on his knees, clasping his hands together and looking up at the star. He opened his mouth to begin before feeling doubtful again and stopping. "No request is too extreme," he reminded himself.

"Please, if you could, it's more important to me than anything, please let Arthur love me back. Now that I know what it is I've been feeling for all these years I- I don't think I could handle it if he didn't love me back."

oOoOo

Author's notes: I think this might actually be my favorite chapter in the whole story. The song that Alfred is singing (and which the chapter is named after) is "When you Wish Upon a Star" from Pinocchio. There is, however, a lot of star wishing throughout the Disney Canon. (Although I'm starting to think that wishing on stars is for babies and crazy people.)


	5. If You Keep On Believing

Hello again! Thanks again for all the reviews and faves… They make me feel happy!

Hope this chapter pleases!

If You Keep on Believing…

"Tomorrow we ride out towards The Forest of Evil. But we mustn't be too hasty. We have heard much of the evil Wizard who lives there, so we must be especially prepared. We must go to where the armor is kept."

Arthur and the princes were huddled together discussing their attack plan. Quartz was giving something that resembled an important speech to the group. Arthur was listening intently, but he couldn't help wondering if they had really heard so much about the wizard, why they hadn't attacked him before.

"Arthur will need a horse first of course," Quartz announced, "To the stable man!"

The princes mounted their steeds and headed off down the street with Arthur hurrying behind them. He was grumbling to himself, when he noticed that they were entering another stable that was just down the street. He sighed, wondering why they hadn't simply walked.

"There you are Arthur. Would you mind picking one of these fine steeds for yourself? I am completely willing to pay for you," Quartz told him.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," Arthur said, beginning to inspect the animals. There really wasn't much choice to be made. There were a number of horses available, but most were old slow looking beasts. There was, however, one tall white animal that seemed a matched set with the four that the princes rode.

It was a spiritless creature. It looked proud and handsome and convenient, the Prince Quartz of horses. It might as well have been a car; it was transportation without being much of an animal. Medieval fairytales were so much easier than the actual middle ages.

"This one will do me fine, thank you," Arthur told Quartz. The prince nodded at him.

"Call out the stable man," he said to Garnet, and the youngest prince hurried off to find the owner. They waited in silence, Arthur looking the horse over and wondering if it could ride forever without getting tired.

Garnet returned shortly with a familiar looking man at his heels. He was a short, fat, ugly man, and Arthur suddenly realized it was the fellow who had nearly run him over with an Ox earlier that afternoon.

"Oy, what're you doing here?" the man demanded, jabbing a stubby finger in Arthur's direction.

Arthur responded with a wide, smug grin, "Prince Quartz here has offered to buy me a horse." The man looked stunned and Arthur continued to smirk.

"What he said is true, now how much are you asking for this fine steed here?" Quartz did business with the man, who stared at Arthur the entire time. When none of the princes were looking Arthur took the opportunity to make rude gestures at the Ox man; it was highly satisfying.

Not long after, the five men rode off together to "the place where the armor is kept", wherever the hell that was. Arthur was last in line and he discovered that riding his heroic steed was as disturbingly easy as he had guessed. It did whatever he wanted with very little direction; the fact that he was wearing socks didn't seem to be any sort of a problem at all.

"So, Arthur, who is it that you are looking for?" Topaz dropped back to ride beside him, "Is it your true love?"

"Oh no, dear god, no. Just no. No," Arthur said quickly, and then he added, "No."

"You sound quite certain."

"I am, most definitely, quite certain."

"Who is this fellow then?" Topaz questioned further.

"Well, he's… our relationship is… well it's… special," Arthur sighed after he had finished speaking. All the power of the English language at his disposal and he couldn't even complete a sentence.

"But he means a lot to you?"

Arthur was quiet for a moment, "I don't know what I'd do if something happened to him. We haven't always gotten on so well, but somehow the idea of losing him is unbearable. He's utterly foolish and stupid, but he means the world to me."

"I don't know how life is in your foreign world of wonderment, but here when someone means the world to you, you've probably found your true love," Topaz insisted. Arthur became aware that the other princes riding ahead of them had slowed down to listen.

"Relationships where I come from are much more complicated," he said quietly.

"You might just be making it complicated…" Turquoise ventured, looking over his shoulder at them. Arthur fixed him with a glare and the prince quickly whipped his head around.

"Turq is right," Garnet chimed in, "Love isn't that hard. Don't you believe in love at first sight?"

"Yes, I'm certain that it happens all the time." Arthur shook his head cursing himself for compulsive Beatles quotation. "Listen, things between me and him are just really complicated, alright? Even if… even if I might… maybe have… some sort of long standing feelings for the chap, there's no reason to think he'd return them…"

"I don't understand," Topaz said. "Do you love him or don't you?"

"It sounds like you love him," Garnet added.

"You look like you love him…" Turquoise insisted.

"Don't you love him?" Quartz asked, and suddenly Arthur couldn't take it.

"Yes, dammit! Fine, I love him. But it's not that simple, he doesn't love me back. We've known each other forever and he thinks that I'm old and boring. He hated me for the longest time; I'm just glad that we're friends again. For now I'm happy with that."

The princes were silent. They all stared at him, letting their horses guide them forward. Arthur stared at the ground, his hands gripped tightly around the reins. He had never spoken these thoughts aloud before. Alfred had meant a lot to him for centuries now, and since the Second World War things had started to change. He had loved Alfred for decades now, but he kept it to himself. This was the first time he'd ever said his feelings.

"But you love him right?" Garnet insisted. Arthur's eyes slid slowly up, burning with annoyance.

"Yes," he said dryly.

"Oh," said Topaz, "Good."

"We have arrived!" Quartz announced. The princes quickly dismounted, seeming to have lost interest in Arthur.

Arthur followed suit, managing to find his voice, despite feeling emotionally drained, "Where is here?"

"The Cave of the Ancient warrior," Quartz said, "He is a great warrior from an era gone by. He lives in this cave where he guards the Golden armor."

"Do we have to fight him or something to get it?"

"Of course not," Garnet snapped, "We just have to ask."

"That seems simple…" Arthur conceded.

"But he will only give us the armor if he deems our journey worthy of it," Topaz added, "He has always turned us down before."

"Well then, if he gives the go ahead this time, it's a good sign we're on the right track," Arthur said as he swung down from his horse.

"I hadn't thought of that…" Turquoise murmured, and the five men headed inside the cave.

It was, understandably, dark inside the cave, but there was some sort of flicker of light down at the end of the path. The sound of their footsteps echoed throughout, and for once the princes were dead silent. It was an unearthly noise, and Arthur felt his skin crawl despite himself. When at last they reached the end of the cave they found a wrinkled old man sitting beside a fire. He turned his face slowly towards them.

"It is you," he croaked, "Where do you intend to venture next?"

"The castle in the forest," Quartz said, "Will you give us the armor?"

The old man blinked his dark eyes at them. The sides of his lips turned up very slowly, and the skin at the corner of his eyes crinkled. He nodded.

At once Arthur and the princes were dressed in sparkling golden armor. It was light as a feather, but surprisingly strong. At each of their sides hung a jeweled sword. Arthur gasped and he reached towards his own blade pulling it from its sheath. The blade was golden as well and it seemed to glow in his hand. He placed one finger against the tip of the blade and watched as a drop of blood appeared.

"This could not exist where I come from…" he said in awe.

The old man turned his eyes towards Arthur and spoke, "Foreign one, land on which the sun never sets, you have guided these men wisely. Continue to lead them forward and you will find what you most desire is at your ultimate destination. But remember, you must be honest with your heart or you could lose that which you find most precious."

Arthur stared at the old man, his mouth open as he tried to ask a question, but the fire between them flared up suddenly and when it went down, the old man was gone.

oOoOo

Alfred woke slowly. The sun had fallen across his face, gently coaxing him back into reality. He was vaguely aware of bird song tweeting him gently awake. His eyes fluttered open slowly, and he found himself face to face with a small blue bird that was staring at him intently.

"What the crap!" Alfred shouted sitting up suddenly and pushing himself backward. The bird fluttered away, flapping its wings in his face as he went.

"Ahh! He's awake!" someone shouted.

"I'm not done dressing!" another sobbed.

"Girls! Girls! Turn your backs!"

Puritan instincts well in tact, Alfred quickly covered his eyes. His cheeks burned brightly, until he realized he had nothing to be embarrassed over. "It's fine. I… I haven't got my glasses on yet. I can hardly see anything past arm length."

"See, there's no reason for you three to be squawking. He's got glasses just like my Prince Turquoise; you can do anything and he won't see it at all," there was laughter then, and Alfred was pretty sure that it was Bluebell that he was hearing.

"You can put your glasses on now, if you'd like Alfie," Violet said gently, and he complied, "Now we'll go down to breakfast and let you change. You can join us when you're done."

The girls filed out, giggling as they did. Alfred watched them until they were gone, flinging off his blankets when they did. He supposed the hope that it had all been a dream was gone completely now. Wrinkling his nose, he changed into another tunic and tight set, same colors different order. He looked at himself in the mirror and shook his head; it was still the gayest thing he'd ever worn.

But he paused in his thought process. Arthur's face swam in his mind, and he supposed he should be more careful about how he used his words. He blushed slightly before shaking his head violently from side to side. All this fairytale business was turning his brain to mush.

He turned and hurried out of the room, enjoying a slight increase in his energy from the day before. He ran quickly through the castle, eventually finding his way back to the room where he had dined with the Wizard the night before. The princesses all sat down at one end of the table together, chattering happily and eating some sort of porridge.

"Alfie! Alfie! Come and eat!" Rose cried out when she saw him. Alfred cocked his head as he came to join them. He was enjoying his energy, even if it was a fraction of what he usually had. He wasn't certain he should eat the food; it might make him feel worse.

"Aren't you gonna eat?" Bluebell asked when she noticed Alfred hesitate.

"It's just gonna make me feel sick," Alfred said, poking his spoon dejectedly at his food.

"It shouldn't hurt too much, Alfred. The wizard expects us to do his work. Cleaning a castle is a lot of work, so he won't make you feel so weak that you can't do that. Not eating at all certainly won't make you feel any better," Violet explained.

"That's true…" Alfred said quietly. He contemplated his porridge for a second longer before quickly digging in. Persuading Alfred to eat more was never a difficult task.

"How strong are you?" He almost missed the question. It had been said very quietly, and was practically inaudible over sound of Alfred's munching.

"D'ja say something?" he asked, looking up at Daisy. She blushed but spoke again.

"Yes… You keep talking about how weak you feel. But you really don't seem that weak, not anymore. Are you still worse off than you usually are?"

"Oh, I'm real strong! When I was little I once lifted a buffalo and flung it clear across the field, and I can carry cars without even trying."

"What's a car?" Bluebell asked. Alfred stared at her for a moment.

"It's a heavy thing," he answered, and he quickly went back to his meal.

OoOoO

Author's Notes: When I was trying to compile different chapters from what I had written for the kink meme, I occasionally had some difficulty. This chapter is an awkward sort of connection between different parts of the stories. The second part fits better with the next chapter and the first part fits better with the last chapter, but there it is. Anyway, because of this, I had a little difficulty picking a title. I eventually picked a lyric from a waking up song, Cinderella's "A Dream is a Wish(Your Heart Makes)". Of course, Cindy is a little more welcoming to her little birdy friends. And besides, maybe Arthur has to learn that if he keeps on believing the dreams that he wishes will come true.


	6. Whistle While You Work

Thanks for all the reviews!

Whistle While you Work

Arthur awoke to the smell of fresh hay and his mind gave an odd jolt of confusion. He had slept in hay often enough in his lifetime, but certainly not in the past two centuries, except perhaps during war. He sat up quickly, shouting something inane about Nazis and the French countryside, before looking about at his surroundings and remembering where he was.

"Oh Bollocks," he swore to himself, leaning forward and placing his head in his hands. The little stable was beginning to fill with daylight, but he could still see the princes sleeping silently throughout barn. Arthur stood and stretched, before going over to his new armor and beginning to prepare himself for the day's battle.

He was worried; he couldn't help it. As much as he told himself that there was no way they could lose in this story book world, he couldn't help but think that something might go wrong. After all, he and Alfred shouldn't have been there, and that could easily throw a wrench into things. What if something went wrong with Alfred that he couldn't fix?

He paused in his dressing. Even if he managed to find Alfred and the two of them made it back home, it didn't mean everything would be perfect. It would be the same as it always was; they'd bicker and fight and Arthur would always be too much of a coward to act on his feelings. The lucky royal bastards strewn about the floor would all have their happily-ever-afters and he would be condemned to an eternity alone.

Arthur sighed heavily and continued to dress. He'd do what he always did. He'd put his energy toward the problem at hand, he'd do what he could for Alfred, and everything else could wait.

"Oy, your highnesses! Up and at 'em, lads. You've princesses to rescue."

The princes sat up blearily and looked about tiredly. In a moment though, they seemed as bright eyed as ever.

"Ah, morning! The day's way of saying 'Salutations'!" Topaz said happily.

"I can't wait to kill some wizard today!" Garnet shouted happily, bounding to his feet.

"I wonder if Bluebell will be waiting for me still…"

"That's all well and good, boys," Quartz said, standing up and looking about grandly, "But the day's first adventure must be breakfast!"

"To breakfast!" the other princes shouted, and in a moment they were all dressed and out the door. Arthur sighed and followed.

oOoOo

"Alright, it's time to get this castle fresh and tidy!" Violet said. The other three girls stood ready at attention, Alfred was in line as well but wasn't exuding quite the same enthusiasm.

"I've brought the brooms," said Daisy.

"I've got the mops," added Bluebell.

"And I've made sure we have plenty of water!" Rose chimed in.

"That's great girls!" said Violet. "Now all we need is a smile on each of our faces, a song in each of our hearts, and a little help from some friends."

Alfred looked at the three girls, each of whom had wide grins on their faces. He couldn't remember anyone ever looking so excited to do work. He certainly didn't feel excited. He had always hated cleaning, but at least in modern times there were a lot of things to make it easier. He would've given anything for a swiffer and vacuum cleaner just at the moment. Even if he'd had them, however, he couldn't imagine how it would be possible for the five of them to clean the entire place by themselves.

Alfred snapped out of his funk when he noticed Violet walking daintily towards one of the castle windows. The five of them were all down on the first floor at the moment, right in the front hall by a vast locked door. When the girls had first shown him to the room, Alfred had immediately suggested breaking out of the wide low windows that framed the door. The girls had told him that the windows were enchanted and wouldn't let any human through them. Naturally Alfred had tried to climb through the window anyway, but had been thrown back as though electrocuted. He couldn't see any reason that Violet might be walking so determinedly toward one of the windows now.

She leaned forward, not poking her head out, but coming as close as she could. Violet began to whistle a high-pitched tune, and suddenly the sound of wings filled the air. A dozen or so large white swans flew through the window and landed demurely at Violet's feet. Alfred gaped.

Bluebell hurried to the window next, she stuck her head right close to it and sang a few wordless bars of a tune. Four deer came bounding through the window. Daisy hurried-up next to her and sang her own tune. A host of happy looking squirrels, chipmunks, and raccoons climbed into the house and settled about her skirt, smiling up at her.

Alfred watched in amazement as Rose took her turn. She whistled her own little tune and then giggled happily as a colorful flock of songbirds flew through the window and perched on her and everything about her. Then all four girls turned and looked at Alfred.

"What? You don't expect me to do that," he paused, "Do you?"

"I'm sure you can do it Alfie!" Rose said, and her birds tweeted their agreement.

"Yeah, Alfie," added Bluebell, "You seem like the sort of person that animals just love. I bet you're surrounded by them all the time."

Much to his disturbance Alfred found that he couldn't argue. Animals really did like him, they always had, which was odd considering his environmental record. Still, there was no arguing with the rabbits that had followed him around as a child or the whale living in his swimming pool.

"I guess I could give it a shot… But don't expect much from me."

"Oh, we won't!" Rose assured him.

Alfred approached the window slowly. He felt incredibly stupid, and he didn't even know what he ought to sing. He settled on belting out a lyricless version of his national anthem.

At first only a few mice came out of holes in the walls and sat curiously by his feet, but a moment later a handful of rabbits hopped through the window. They were shortly followed by an owl, a badger, a porcupine, two foxes, three wolves, a bear wearing a turtle on its head, and two bald eagles. Alfred decided it was time to stop singing.

"That was amazing…" Daisy said with quiet disbelief.

"I'm sure they'll be a great deal of help!" Violet told him with a smile. "Alright everybody. Let's split up and get this place in tip top shape."

The animals and the girls all hurried off throughout the castle to clean, leaving Alfred confused in the entryway.

oOoOo

"This is it Fellows; we head for our final battle," Quartz spoke with his usual bravado, but did not move forward. Arthur and the four princes were all mounted and standing at the edge of town. The dirt path toward the forest stretched out before them ominously. It felt as though a single step forward would deny them any chance to turn back.

Arthur swallowed thickly and urged his horse forward. He could hear the princes behind him, following. Together they all set out, and rode until the forest was in sight. Throughout the entire trip the group was uncharacteristically silent.

"This really is a strange forest," Arthur murmured to himself. The twisted, leafless branches of the trees seemed to reach out threateningly. There were no animals about, and almost everything about the place seemed to warn against entering it. Even the stoic horses seemed to hesitate.

Arthur grasped the hilt of his sword and started the group forward once again. There was a collective intake of breath from the princes but they followed him loyally. The horses' hooves were the only sound that could be heard, and the silence only served to increase their nerves.

Suddenly from every direction the sound of crows could be heard. They cawed and dived at the would-be heroes, causing them all to throw up their arms to protect their faces. But the crows touched none of them, instead they took to the air as one and disappeared past the branches and into the sky.

"What was that?" Arthur asked, breathing heavily as his adrenaline returned to more normal levels.

"Just a bunch of stupid old crows. Nothing that's going to stop us!" Garnet said in a voice that was a great deal louder than necessary.

"I've never seen crows act like that…" Turquoise muttered.

"You're just being a coward," Garnet snapped back.

"No… He may well be right," Arthur said thoughtfully. "We should be more careful as we proceed. I think we may have set off the alarm system. It won't be so easy going forward."

"What is this 'alarm system' that you speak of?" Quartz asked.

"I think those crows have gone to warn the wizard that we're coming. I'm sure he'll try to stop us from advancing."

But Arthur was wrong. There were no more traps or surprises. They went on towards the castle at the forest's center completely undisturbed. The princes seemed to calm down the longer they rode. They began to laugh and talk with one another, happily unconcerned. Arthur, however, grew more anxious as they rode. He could only imagine that this was a bad sign. He was certain that the crows were lookouts, and if the Wizard wasn't reacting by sending something to greet them, than he must be planning something up at the castle.

oOoOo

Alfred and the bear were sweeping the stairs together in a companionable silence. Working alongside animals had seemed disturbing and unsanitary at first, but the bear really did seem to be doing a good job, so Alfred decided not to complain. Besides bears could be pretty cool when they wanted to, maybe Mathew had the right idea.

Alfred was humming happily as he swept, and the girls were right, it really did make time seem to fly. He had hummed his way through quite the repertoire of songs including Elvis, MJ and the Beatles, but he was currently stuck on an old romance song.

"Hmm,hmm, hmm, hmmm, hmm, with your smile so warm, hmm, hmmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, there is nothing for me but to love you just the way you look, hmm, hmm." Alfred was dancing with the broom and he was very glad that nobody could see him. Well, the bear could see him, but the bear was dancing too so the blackmail was mutual.

The large front doors of the castle swung open with a resounding thud, and Alfred stopped his dancing rather abruptly. The wizard stood in the doorway with his cape billowing out behind him; there was a panicked fury in his eyes and the look he gave Alfred froze him where he stood.

"Boy, what are you doing there?" he snapped.

"Cleaning, Sir!" Alfred responded quickly. It had been an almost military reaction, but he was ashamed a moment after he'd done it.

"Right, right of course. Just as you should be… yes…" The wizard ran a hand through his long black hair before fixing his eyes on Alfred once again. "The girls, where are they?"

"Iunno," Alfred said shrugging, "Around." He was much prouder of this useless response.

"Well then help me find them you damned ignoramus. And get that bear out of my sight!" The Wizard hurried up the stairs, grabbing Alfred by the arm as he went. The nation was startled by how easily he was forced forward. He struggled valiantly against the Wizard's grasp but his strength, of course, failed him.

As the two men hurried through the castle a steady stream of animals headed in the opposite direction. They ran from the Wizard's approach, the same way they might flee an impending storm. Alfred had enough experience as an outdoorsman to know that when the animals run, he ought to run too, but he was dragged ever onward.

They found Rose dusting chairs in the dining room; one look from the Wizard and she whimpered. She followed them obediently, making no other sound. The rest of the girls were found in similar ways. They were working happily, but one look from the Wizard and they would follow him submissively. Alfred looked around at them desperately, wishing he could do something to help. Daisy was weeping quietly, and the hero in Alfred cried out for him to act. He tugged miserably and hopelessly at his arm.

"You found everyone, so where are we going now?" Alfred asked petulantly.

"Patience Fool, you will know in a moment," the Wizard responded. He spoke true, and a few seconds later the group found themselves at the top of a castle tower. "Stay here my pretties." The Wizard advised them. He smiled in a way that made the girls step back and hide behind Alfred.

But they had nothing to fear from him in the moment. He shut the tower door, leaving the five captives alone and imprisoned.

"Why did he do that?" Rose whimpered. "He's never done anything like this before. What did we do wrong?"

"I don't know what happened, Rose dear, but we'll be alright," Violet said comfortingly. She placed her arms around the youngest girl.

"I'm scared!" Daisy wailed and she forced herself into Violet's embrace as well. Bluebell stood off to the side, hugging her arms against her chest. She looked terrified. Alfred watched them tiredly before turning his gaze towards the window.

"Wait a sec…" he said slowly, "I bet I know what's up. He was forced to make a move. It's just like a war, see? He was forced to make a move because his enemies made a move first!"

The girls did not see, but they turned their teary eyes towards him hopefully.

"Someone must be coming to rescue us!" Alfred shouted happily. The girls' eyes lit up and they all began to smile. Alfred found himself at the center of a giant group hug. He was too marvelously happy to feel awkward. He could only think of one thing: Arthur was coming!

oOoOo

Author's notes: A few songs to mention here. The chapter is named after "Whistle While you Work" from Snow White. It created animated animals for all of posterity. Although, everyone should also know the "Happy Working Song" from Enchanted which shows why Alfred shouldn't try this in New York City.

Also Alfred is humming "The Way you Look Tonight" which was popular in the 30s and 40s. The Frank Sinatra version is probably the most famous but I like the version with Bing Crosby and Judy Garland best.


	7. That Evil Die, and Good Endure

Thank you for all the reviews!

That Evil Die and Good Endure

The ride through the forest had been long and exhaustingly uneventful. Arthur was tense in his expectation, but as of yet the princes were right, and nothing had happened. Arthur scanned the path and the surrounding trees as they traveled. He had yet to see a single creature and he wondered where all the animals had gone. His question was shortly answered.

Out of nowhere and down the path ahead of them came a veritable herd of animals. Birds, squirrels, rabbits, deer, wolves and more came running, flying, hopping in their direction. The horses actually reared up as the creatures ran about their feet, forcing Arthur and the princes to try desperately to calm them.

When most of the animals had cleared, the five men sat startled on their steeds, staring at the backs of the retreating animals. One last beast lumbered down the pathway, causing Arthur to turn his head back in the direction of the castle. A large hairy bear stopped as it passed by them. It locked eyes with Arthur in a way that made the nation feel uneasy. It continued to stare for what felt like a very long time, and then it roared quietly before continuing to flee from the castle.

"That didn't seem right…" Turquoise said quietly.

"No. The animals always know. They are wiser than us, and they say to flee," Topaz answered. His voice wasn't quite so poetic as usual; he sounded frightened.

"Yes, they may be wiser when it comes to recognizing danger. But what makes us human isn't our ability to recognize danger, but our ability to judge what's truly important. Are you more afraid of the danger, or never seeing your beloved again? Because I'm still going forward."

The princes looked guiltily at Arthur.

"We'll go forward," Quartz answered for all of them. The other princes nodded determinedly. They continued forward and it wasn't long until the castle came into view.

It was a humungous black castle and its towers twisted up high above the trees and stood out against the pale gray sky. Perched all over the roofs were thousands of crows, and they all stared down at the would-be rescuers with soulless beady eyes. There was a tremendous flash of lightening and a man appeared on the front steps of the castle. He had long dark hair and was dressed in a flowing robe. In his hand was a tall staff. He smiled stiffly in a way that did not reach his eyes.

"Welcome heroes. I'm sure the fight will be valiant," the Wizard nodded curtly and raised his arms like Moses parting the red sea. Two large red dragons flew up over the castle and landed between their master and the adventurers. Arthur gripped the hilt of sword and rode forward.

oOoOo

"I see them! I see them!" Rose shrieked; Alfred and the other three princesses hurried to the tower window. From their high view it was difficult to see precisely what was going on far below. There were, however, clear as day, five white horses ridden by five men dressed all in gold. Alfred squinted his eyes behind his glasses, trying desperately to see which one was Arthur.

"There are five…" Daisy said quietly, but her voice sound happy, "Alfie, there's one for you!"

oOoOo

The Dragons flew towards the princes who scattered immediately in all directions. Arthur stood his ground, holding his sword out. The dragons, however, did not seem interested in him. They wanted the princes.

"Don't run, you twits. Turn and fight like men!" Arthur barked. The princes tried to look at him as they dashed pass.

"But they'll kill us!" Garnet shouted.

"Listen, there are four of you and two of them. Fight together and you can confuse them. Garnet, you and Topaz take that one! Quartz, you and Turquoise take the other. I'll take their Master," Arthur ordered. The princes nodded and did as he said. With direction they seemed less frightened, and they turned on their attackers. Confident that they weren't simply going to get themselves killed, Arthur turned his attention towards the Wizard.

The man was watching him stoically from the stairs of the castle. His eyes were eerily fixed on Arthur alone, as though he'd known from the beginning who it was that he would be facing down.

Arthur charged, sword drawn and raised. Yet as he got closer, the wizard began to change. He grew taller and wider, his skin grew red and scaly and wings sprouted out of his back. Arthur's eyes widened in horror and he pulled his horse to a halt. He was face to face with a dragon twice the size of the others.

"Dear… God…" Arthur breathed. The dragon smirked at him before taking to the air and swooping down on him. Arthur dodged, directing his horse to the side. He found himself narrowly escaping a sudden shot of flame. He pulled his horse to a stop and leaned low over his horse's mane. The beast flew over his head, and Arthur reached up with his blade and sliced at its belly. The dragon roared and flew straight up to escape further injury. It sneered cruelly down at the ancient nation and prepared to dive again.

Arthur readied himself for the attack. He dodged quickly to the right just as the creature was about to hit him. It barely had time to turn back towards the sky before hitting the ground. It twisted out of the way, and Arthur scratched his sword along its right side. There was another horrific roar.

The creature flew up and perched upon the castle looking angrily down at him. Arthur watched carefully, wondering what the dragon was planning for him. Behind him he heard a loud pained roar and a cry of "Take that foul beast!"

Quartz rode up beside him, but Arthur refused to move his eyes from his own scheming attacker.

"Do you need assistance, or should Turquoise and I help our other fellows?"

"Leave me to this. He's not so clever a fighter as he thinks he is. I can take him myself," Arthur answered. Quartz turned and left him. Arthur, despite himself turned and glanced as he left. The Wizard took the moment.

The dragon dove at him again; Arthur readied himself and once again dodged to the side. This time, however, the beast's claw flew out and snatched him off his horse. Arthur clung desperately to his sword as he felt himself lifted high into the air. He used the blade to hack madly at the large fingers that were wrapped about him.

"Do you really want me to drop you?" The dragon growled smoothly. Arthur glared at the creature, readying himself to attack again. Suddenly, however, he found himself slammed into the tower wall. He yelled out as he felt his body wracked in pain.

oOoOo

Alfred was trying desperately to watch the battle over the heads of the four princesses. The five of them were all looking in different directions, moving around as they tried to keep their eyes on their personal rescuers.

Alfred was struck by what he saw. Arthur seemed so calm and so cool. He looked right with a sword in his hand. He seemed so elegant and strong; Alfred was impressed and he could feel his face flushing with excitement. There was no way that Arthur could lose.

Suddenly, however, he saw Arthur lifted bodily off his horse. Alfred's heart caught in his throat, and he gasped as he saw Arthur slammed into the wall of the castle again and again. Alfred couldn't simply stay where he was. Glancing about the room, he tried to find anything he could use as a weapon. All he could find was a number of spell books stacked in the corner. Desperately Alfred grabbed as many of them as he could carry and made his way back to the window.

"Alfie, what are you doing?" Bluebell asked in confusion, as the nation forced the girls aside.

"Can one of you open the window? And hurry!" Alfred asked. Violet looked at him in confusion, but she quickly complied just the same.

As carefully as he could, Alfred stepped out on to the flat stone ridge that ran around the tower. He could see Arthur and the Dragon a little way off; he aimed a book at them and threw. The book made it about half way there before plummeting towards the ground. Cursing his weakened strength, Alfred swallowed nervously and inched his way closer.

oOoOo

Arthur was in horrible pain. His body was rattling around in his armor and he screamed out in pain. He wanted desperately to fight back, but could only just manage to cling desperately to his sword.

When was it that he'd become this weak? He'd grown soft these past few decades. There had been days when he could fight brutal battles with the best of them. Now a little pain was practically stopping him from doing anything at all.

Then, suddenly, he felt the dragon flinch. It stopped mid-smash, only just managing not to drop its prey. Arthur opened his eyes in weary confusion. What was it that could have distracted the beast?

The dragon did not appear to be in pain, but it did look annoyed. It was glaring off in the direction of one the towers, as though something over there was pestering him. That's when Arthur caught sight of him. Alfred was standing precariously on the castle ledge, aiming a book at the Dragon with one hand. He threw it with all his might and it bounced anti-climatically against the creatures arm. Unperturbed Alfred picked another book from the small pile he was holding, and made to throw that one as well.

"Excuse me," the dragon sighed, "I'm rather fond of those books so I have to take care of this. But I do so enjoy beating you, so if you'll kindly wait here I will be back in a moment."

The dragon propped Arthur up in a windowsill, before flying over in Alfred's direction. Arthur reached out desperately as though somehow he could stop the creature, but could only watch as it landed besides Alfred in its human form.

Alfred stepped back as though nervous, before defiantly dropping the last few books over the edge of the castle. The wizard reached out and slapped him across the face. Alfred reeled, almost stumbling off the edge, before the Wizard grabbed the front of his tunic and yanked him closer.

Arthur's brows wrinkled in concern. There was something wrong with Alfred. He had seen the boy drag cars down the street without breaking a sweat, seen him as a small child swing a full grown bison around like ragdoll, and now he was practically collapsing at a single blow. Arthur watched as Alfred struggled desperately against the Wizard's grasp, and failed.

The ancient nation leaned forward, trying to see more of the little battle. He slipped and found himself falling, only just barely managing catch himself on the edge of a ledge that ran beneath the window. Breathing heavily, Arthur labored not to fall as he clung to the ridge and his sword. He threw a glance in Alfred's direction and saw something that terrified him even more.

The Wizard was holding Alfred against him, with the boy's arms held behind his back. There was something in his hand, something he was trying to force into Alfred's mouth, something that Alfred was trying desperately to avoid. The Wizard won, and he kept his hand over the boy's mouth until he swallowed against his will. Alfred's body went very stiff and then he collapsed loosely into the Wizard's arms.

"ALFRED!" Arthur screamed, "Alfred! Dammit!"

He tried to pull himself up, but failed again, and he found tears of frustration coming to his eyes. He couldn't do it. He wasn't strong enough. He'd fail, and Alfred would suffer.

But he couldn't stop the scene of Alfred collapsing from playing over again in his mind. If only he'd stayed where he was he wouldn't have gotten hurt. But that was just like Alfred; he had come to Arthur's rescue even though he was weak and knew he couldn't do it. So Arthur couldn't give up. This time Alfred was the one who needed a hero, and Arthur wasn't going to let him suffer because of his own weakness. With a shout Arthur pulled himself up onto the ledge, and began to run to Alfred's rescue.

The Wizard, in Dragon form, was moving the boy. It was currently peering in to the window of one of the towers as it carefully reached in and placed Alfred inside. To Arthur, all that mattered was that the beast was distracted. Running at full speed he leapt from the ridge and landed on the Dragon's back with his sword facing down.

The Dragon's roar was terrible and it arched its back in pain. Arthur carefully maintained his balance by reaching out with one hand to hold onto a wing. The dragon flailed and snapped at him, but Arthur was unreachable where he stood. The beast twisted and rolled midair, but the nation clung to its wing joint and refused to be thrown off.

When the dragon stopped this manner of attack and began, instead, to thrash with its tail, Arthur threw himself forward onto its neck. He lay on his stomach with one arm around the creature's neck and other clutching his sword. Arthur swung the blade skyward and then plunged it, with all his might, through the skull of the beast.

The Dragon stiffened and grew still, then together Arthur and the Dragon plummeted towards the ground.

oOoOo

So the next chapter is the last chapter, although it's a little longer than the rest.

Anyway, this chapter title is a quote from Sleeping Beauty. It's during the final battle between Prince Philip and Malificent. I kind of stole the whole magical-badguy-warping-into-a-dragon thing from there.

The whole quote is: "O, sword of truth fly swift and sure, that evil die and good endure!" It's said by one of the good fairies (Flora). They enchant the prince's sword and help save the day and stuff. Because the fairies do all the real work.


	8. True Love's Kiss

Thanks for the reviews everyone! Here's the final chapter and I hope you enjoy it.

True Love's Kiss

"Arthur! Arthur, Fellow, are you alright?" The nation's eyes fluttered open and he looked up to see the four princes staring down at him. He groaned and sat up, putting a hand to his head.

He was sitting on something smooth but relatively cushy. It took him a moment to realize that it was the dragon's corpse. He jolted quickly to his feet before stumbling. Quartz caught him and helped him remain standing.

"Good thing you fell on top of him, instead of the other way around, huh?" Garnet asked happily.

"Arthur, your strategy was fantastic! We have felled the beasts together through the power of teamwork," Topaz told him with a smile.

Arthur stared back at him blearily for a moment, before he finally felt truly aware of what was going on.

"Alfred!" he said suddenly, and he pulled away from Quartz and clambered off the dragon. The princes followed close behind and together they ran into the castle. "Dammit. This place is huge, where do we go?"

Arthur glanced around as he felt his panic rising. Alfred had collapsed and, for all he knew, was in need of immediate assistance. He had to find Alfred, and he had to find him now. Where was the composure that he prided himself on when he most needed it?

Arthur and the princes hurried around, looking into random rooms and otherwise getting nowhere. It was then that Turquoise shouted something out.

"Look, birds!" The entire group turned and stared. The hoard of creatures that they had seen escaping the forest was now returning. The all hurried together up the center stairs as though they knew exactly where they were going. It didn't take more than a second for Arthur and the princes to follow them.

Up the stairs and through a myriad of hallways they followed the animals, until they found themselves at the foot of a long and winding staircase. There was no doubt that what they were searching for was at the top of the stairs.

Arthur swallowed in apprehension before charging his way up the steps, dodging the little animals that ran about his feet as he did. When he at last reached the top the sight that met his eyes stopped his breath.

Alfred was laid out on a bench with his hands clasped over his chest. Four girls were huddled in front of him, crying together quietly, and as the animals filtered in they joined the girls in their reverence. The room was filled with life, and yet was utterly silent.

Arthur walked forward slowly, the sound of his feet seeming unnaturally loud as he did. The girls looked up as he passed, but he didn't notice them. He simply knelt before Alfred and reached a hand out to stroke his cheek.

His skin was still warm, which Arthur had to remind himself was only natural. Alfred was a nation, he couldn't die, but he was so utterly still that it was difficult to believe that he was still alive.

Even when he was a baby Alfred would always turn his head when Arthur touched his cheek. He'd still do it at meetings when Arthur tried to wake him up without making a seen. It was an endearing trait, a sleepy version of his usual desire for attention. Alfred did nothing now. Arthur's touch went by unnoticed. This was no natural sleep, and for a nation it may well have been worse than death.

"Violet?" Arthur heard Quartz's voice behind him, and then there was a small gasp.

"Oh Quartz," It was a happy reaction, but subdued. There was a sob, and he heard one of the girls get up and run to her prince. He heard the scene repeated three more times. It was all the same subdued happy reunion, and all the while Alfred lay still.

"Al, wake up. Please, Al. Wake up for me," Arthur urged quietly. He shook Alfred's shoulder, but there was no reaction.

"Dammit Alfred! Wake up!" He shouted, shaking him harder in frustration. "Why won't you wake up?"

"I don't think that's going to work, Arthur," Quartz said gently.

"Oh, shut up. If you're not going to help than shut up!" the old nation shouted back. "Dammit Al, what did he force on you?"

Arthur could feel tears coming to his eyes, and he tried desperately to think of something he could do to bring life back into the face that lay still before him.

"Spells! I need spells!" He glanced frantically around the room, before hurrying over to a small bookcase in the corner. He could feel the pitying eyes of the royals behind him, but he didn't care. Desperately he flipped through the pages of multiple books, but he could find nothing. It was all dark magic "Dammit what do I do?"

He staggered back over to Alfred and glared down at him as his lip began to quiver, "You idiot. This is all your fault! You stupid dammit… You… shit… God, I hate you!"

"You don't hate him," a quiet voice said behind him. He turned to see that the little blond girl who was leaning on Garnet was speaking to him. "He said that you're his true love. I know you don't hate him!"

"He said that?" Arthur asked quietly.

"Pretty much," another girl told him.

It was ridiculous, all this true love business. Yet it sounded like exactly the sort of fluff that Alfred would buy into. Hell, if the situation were reversed Alfred would probably have tried to kiss him awake.

Arthur froze in his thought process. His eyes darted quickly to the boy's face, and he felt his heart clench. Very slowly he bent forward and laid his lips against Alfred's.

Arthur leaned back and waited, terrified that nothing would happen. He could almost feel his heart breaking, and then Alfred's eyes fluttered open. He sat up slowly, his eyes scanning the room slowly before at last they landed on Arthur.

"Hey," he said simply, his face breaking into his usual goofy grin.

"Hey yourself, you great stupid idiot! I just saved your life; I'll have you know. You practically died. I'm sure it was all fine for you caught up in dream land, but I was worried something awful. I was terrified, you Idiot, and the first thing you say is 'hey'. I should never have kissed you. I should have just left you there, that's what."

"You… kissed me…" Alfred said slowly. His face was turning quite red as he spoke, and he looked utterly embarrassed.

"Yeah, so… it was the only way I could see to wake you up. I don't care how embarrassed you are, it was a matter of necessity. I know how you feel about the whole 'gay' thing, but it needed doing so I did it. If you ask me-"

Arthur was cut off abruptly when Alfred pulled him down into his lap and kissed him rather passionately. Alfred pulled back and nuzzled his forehead against Arthur's.

"I missed you," he said quietly. Arthur reached up and put a hand against his cheek before leaning forward and kissing him again.

"I missed you too."

"And… I… I kind of you know… love you… and stuff," Alfred said quietly, averting his eyes, "but I suppose that's kind of obvious now…"

"How do you figure?"

"You can't wake someone up with a regular kiss, it's got to be true love's kiss or it doesn't work. Duh."

Arthur hit him upside the head gently before leaning forward and kissing him again.

"Um, I don't think you're supposed to kiss like that until the happily ever after part," One of the girls said quietly. Neither nation noticed.

oOoOo

Alfred at last leaned back from Arthur and stared at him happily. The older nation's cheeks were tinged with pink, whether it was from their kissing or from the embarrassment that arose with his sudden awareness of their audience, Alfred didn't care. Arthur looked beautiful, and handsome, and cute all at once, and just looking at him made Alfred's heart pound. He was struck by a sudden desire to squeeze Arthur as hard as he could, and a moment later the Englishman was spluttering in his arms.

"Let go. Al, I can't breathe…" he gasped and Alfred released him.

"Sorry! I guess I just don't know my own strength," Alfred laughed nervously and then he froze. He sprung up from the bench before lifting it, Arthur in tow, up above his head. Smiling brilliantly he placed it back on the ground before picking Arthur up and hugging him a little more gently than before, "Your magic kisses made me strong again!"

"I… what?"

"That wizard guy, he gave me this food and sucked out all my strength so I couldn't do anything! Not hardly. I was all weak. It was worse than a depression even! But now I'm all strong again, and it's cause of your magic kiss!" Alfred pulled Arthur close again and kissed him enthusiastically on the forehead. "I love you!"

Taken aback by the boy's easy, excitable, affection, Arthur found his face turning bright red, "you too…" he mumbled quietly.

"You two are so sweet together!" Rose squealed and she hurried up to Alfred and hugged him for good measure. The others joined in too, and Alfred found himself at the center of a Princess group hug. He could see Arthur watching him with careful concern, in much the same way that Princes were.

"Heh, you girls should probably go back to your princes over there. I mean they just rescued you and stuff. They probably don't want to see you hugging some other guy just now…"

"Oh, Alfie, you don't count!" Bluebell told him laughing. The girls gave him one last squeeze before hurrying back over to their respective princes, who were still eyeing Alfred warily. Arthur returned the favor, grabbing Alfred's hand possessively.

The mood in the room was improved slightly when Arthur decided that it would be best if everyone were introduced. The girls all curtsied to the Englishman, giggling as they did, and Alfred enthusiastically shook hands with all the princes

"I'm sorry about that," Arthur said in embarrassment, "he's never really known how to get on well with monarchs."

"Nonsense, he seems like a charming fellow," Quartz assured them, and Alfred grinned cheekily at his ally. "Now, we shall all return to my kingdom, and I shall hold a glorious ball to celebrate the rescue!"

"Oh, Quartz, that'll be so lovely!" Violet told him.

"My dearest Daisy will dance like a petal on the wind," Topaz said, getting down on one knee and looking sweetly up at Daisy.

"Yes, well, that all sounds very nice, but I'm afraid that Alfred and I need to find a way back to our own home as soon as possible."

"You can't skip the celebration," Garnet whined, and Rose who was clinging to his arm joined in.

"I'll just cry if Alfie doesn't come!"

"Yeah Artie, why don't we get to go?" Alfred asked, turning on his best pouty face.

"You don't want to go to a ball, Al. You hate that sort of dancing! Besides, you'll have to wear tights."

"I'm all ready wearing tights…" the younger nation replied, looking at his legs in embarrassment. Arthur let his eyes roam down the other nation's body, finally taking in what he'd been seeing.

"Yes you are…" he said quietly.

"Hey, Arthur, focus. Are we going to the wrap party or not?"

"What? No, Al, I'm sorry, but we need to get back, and I need to stay here where there are spell books and the like to work with."

"…Fine. I guess this is goodbye then," he said turning to the princesses, and suddenly he was hug tackled again.

oOoOo

Alfred sat on the castle steps dressed again in his regular clothes and absentmindedly scratching his bear friend on the head. He'd been watching Arthur run back and forth, searching through spell books and muttering to himself. Alfred was extremely bored.

"Why don't you just do whatever it was that you did to get us here? You didn't forget, did you?" he asked sleepily.

"Unless you've got a book about our lives, I don't very well understand what it is that you want me to do!" Arthur snapped. He sighed and went over and kissed Alfred on the head, "Sorry, I'm sure we're both just frustrated."

They sat together, leaning on one another and worrying together. Alfred put his arm around the older nation and buried his face in his hair.

"It's got to be a book, huh?"

"Well, something like it. Why? I don't suppose you have an idea."

" I dunno. I mean, I printed out a map to your house from the airport. I still have it in my pocket."

"I have lived in the same building for longer than you have been alive. Why the hell did you need mapquest?"

"I don't know. Shut up, roundabouts are stupid. I always get stuck in them, and the road goes the wrong way, and its hard to give directions to you taxi drivers, cuz some of them have really thick accents. I just thought it would be good to have. Anyway, do you think it'll work?" Alfred asked.

"It's worth a try. It'd be a bit of a deus ex machina though, wouldn't it?"

"Well, duh, Arthur. We're in a fairy tale!"

OoOoO

Not an hour later, the two men stood before a map that they had placed on the floor. They looked at one another and nodded, and together, holding hands, they stepped forward.

OoOoO

They awoke, sometime later, laying together in Arthur's front yard. Sitting up they looked at one another, and Alfred's face broke into a huge smile.

"You did it!" he shouted, holding Arthur close and kissing him. Arthur smiled into the kiss before deepening it and leaning in. Alfred sighed sweetly when they stopped, which caused Arthur to smile despite himself.

He stood up and held a hand out to the younger nation, "Come here you big lug, let's go inside."

Arthur opened the door and frowned when he caught sight of the mud that had been tracked across his floor by the United States just a few days ago. He turned his impressive glare on Alfred.

"I'm going to change, I expect you to be cleaning that up when I get back"

"Oh fine," Alfred groaned, and Arthur left him there to do work.

As Arthur changed into a fresh pair of comfortable modern clothing, he couldn't help but smile like a fool. He couldn't have imagined this happening just a few days ago. A magical adventure was one thing, he wasn't too surprised by that, but to have Alfred all to himself, to be able to kiss him, and hold him, that was something else entirely. He supposed he shouldn't be so dismissive of all those dream come true stories that Alfred loved. Perhaps it really was possible.

He hurried back downstairs, determined to help Alfred clean up, despite his better judgment. He did not, however, find the boy cleaning. He was sitting on the couch and watching TV.

"Al!" Arthur barked, "You said you'd clean up."

"It's cool, Artie. I got it covered, just go and look." Arthur eyed him warily, but went to check the entryway. He found a number of small squirrels scrubbing away at his tile floor. Arthur backed away slowly.

"What was that?"

"I don't entirely understand it, but it's a lot better than a roomba, huh? Besides this way we can spend more time together!"

Arthur melted slightly at this, and went and sat on the couch besides him.

"What did you have in mind?"

"Well, I'm starving so I figured we could get McDonalds."

"I thought you didn't want to eat any food that made you feel weaker," Arthur teased with a smirk.

"Shut up," Alfred said before continuing, " I also thought maybe we could rent some Disney movies and snuggle on the couch, and then maybe do… other stuff later."

Arthur very much liked the idea of 'other stuff later' so he nodded in agreement. "I wasn't really expecting you to have such a plan."

"Well, what did you think I was going to say?" Alfred asked, as he got up and put his coat on. He waited at the door, for Arthur to join him.

"Honestly?" The older nation said, "I thought you were going to say something sappy. I thought you'd tell me that you thought we should live happily ever after."

The End

I hope everyone liked it.

This chapter is named after the "True Love's Kiss" Song from Enchanted, although, of course, magical kisses are Princess standard.

Also, Happy Thanksgiving to my fellow Alfredians.


End file.
